New generation HyLogger improves understanding and sustainability of our mineral industry
The newly installed Hylogger 4 at the Geological Survey of New South Wales Hylogger facility. Image: Geological Survey of New South Wales (GSNSW)
Australia’s resource sector is entering a new era with the deployment of the next-generation HyLoggerTM, the HyLogger4. HyLoggers – spectral scanners made to quickly and safely analyse drill core samples using reflectance spectroscopy and digital imaging – can aid mineral exploration and contribute to creating a complete picture of Australia’s geological landscape.
A long-term investment
The new HyLogger4 technology is enabled by strategic co-investment from state governments, CSIRO and AuScope’s National Virtual Core Library (NVCL) program. Two HyLogger4s are operational in New South Wales and South Australia, with another soon to be launched in Western Australia.
NVCL project leader Shane Mulè said that without the ongoing investment from AuScope, researchers would never have developed a fourth-generation HyLogger.
“Without AuScope’s coordinated investment over nearly two decades, we would not have gone from a CSIRO lab prototype to a national, interoperable, and now international hyperspectral imaging infrastructure,” he said. “AuScope’s continued support gave the states the confidence to lead the way as adopters and co-invest in HyLogger4. It’s not just data that is critical; it’s community practice and knowledge sharing as well.”
– Dr Shane Mule, Program Lead for AuScope Virtual Research Environment (AVRE)
Levelling up
The HyLogger4 is the world’s first continuous visible-to-thermal infrared core scanning system, offering unprecedented spectral coverage from 0.4 to 15 microns. Alongside hyperspectral data, the system collects ultra-high-resolution RGB imagery and 2.5D laser surface profiles from the same rock surface. Shane said:
“The practical differences between HyLogger4 and its predecessor HyLogger3 are an additional spectral sensor and a much higher resolution camera. The additional sensor, from a geologist’s perspective, will help find new minerals, ones that we couldn’t find before. It can also help us to better discern the differences between minerals that we couldn’t have previously seen.”
Shane said this improved information and imagery would contribute to more in-depth mineral library records and enable these to be digitally captured more effectively.
“Not everything can be stored forever. The drill core samples degrade, and there just isn’t enough space. Geological Surveys in Australia are hitting maximum capacity in their core libraries,” Shane said. “If we can record the information from these cores and store it digitally, we can have more extensive libraries in the future and attract greater investment to Australia.”
The Hylogger 4 being operated by personnel at Minerals Resources Tasmania via the Department of State Growth. Image: Jo Condon
Reducing the environmental impacts of mineral exploration
While the technical leap forward is significant, the broader impact of HyLogger4 lies in its contribution to national and global resource sustainability.
Dr Jess Stromberg is a Senior Research Scientist at CSIRO and leads the training and outreach activities within the NVCL.
“Drilling is water- and energy-intensive,” Jess said. “If we can reduce the number of holes we are drilling because we are getting better information out of fewer drill cores, then we minimise the environmental footprint of exploration.”
– Dr Jess Stromberg, NVCL Team Member
The technology of the HyLogger4 also enables researchers to go back to old cores and analyse them for different minerals.
“Twenty years ago, when the first HyLogger was being developed, we weren’t looking for certain minerals, because we didn’t need them in the quantities we do now,” Jess said. “Going back to those drill cores with new technologies like the Hylogger4 provides a huge resource of improved mineralogical data that can now be tapped without even having to drill new holes.”
Beyond the mining site
The HyLogger4 represents the first time that this infrastructure has become commercially available.
“There is no other scanner in the world like this,” Shane said. “The fact that it’s now a commercial product, thanks to the CSIRO-to-industry translation and AuScope’s early investment, means this capability can spread globally.”
Shane said that now that the HyLogger4 can be purchased ‘off the shelf,’ there is a significant opportunity to use this technology for non-geological applications such as investigating artwork, archaeological artifacts, and bones.
Case Study
The new Hylogger4 is revolutionising mineral exploration with hyperspectral imaging, unlocking new geological insights and assisting in applications beyond mining.
Authors
Author: Alysha Huxley, Scientell
Editor: Daniel Vlahek, AuScope
Further information
